Chapter 10

Vaughn's POV

"D alarm" I mumble to myself as I hit the button that silences it. Jack gave us all the night off to get enough sleep, but Sydney and I both had other things on our mind. Sure, we stopped earlier than we had planned, but still, waking up to a blaring alarm at two in the morning is never a pleasant experience.

I kiss Sydney gently on the neck, and then explore the area with my tongue. (She's the most ticklish in that spot.) Usually when I do this, Sydney turns into a wriggling, laughing mess. This morning she just rolls over slightly and looks at me.

"Not this morning, Vaughn—Kendall—whatever, I've got a killer headache."

"Syd, you can call me whatever you want."

"Vaughn?"

"Yeah?"

"Could you get me some aspirin?"

I smile at her. "Of course."

I roll out of the bed, walk over to where I had discarded my clothes from the night before, and slip on my boxers, and head over to the bathroom. Opening up the medicine cabinet, I push aside my shaving cream and some of her make-up, finally laying my hands on a small bottle. Tapping out two pills, I walk into the kitchen and grab a glass.

(As unfortunate as it is about Nadia, I must admit that I do like being the only ones in the apartment. I remember one time when Sydney asked me to get a drink, I ran into Nadia, who wasn't fully dressed either. Talk about awkward. I'm just glad it wasn't Weiss, although Sydney told me she's gotten an eyeful herself.)

That's beside the point, though. I fill up the glass, and take it in to Sydney who's also starting to get dressed.

"Do you want to shower first or should I?" I ask.

She looks over at me and smiles. "Who said anything about first?"

Thirty minutes later, we both emerge from the shower, soaking wet. "Do you want breakfast?"

She groans. "It's too early."

"Syd?"

"Yeah?"

"Is everything all right?"

"What? Why are you asking?"

"You've been acting a bit…strange since we got back together."

"I'm fine, Vaughn."

I know I have no reason to, but I don't believe her. Something has been off in our relationship.

As I drive to APO, I glance over and see Sydney rotating the ring on her finger.

"Are you having second thoughts?"

She looks at me and then looks down. Something's clearly wrong. This is how she acts when she's not telling me something. She puts on a brave face, but little tics give her away.

"I'm just…" she begins, and then looks at me. "Please keep your eyes on the road."

What she just said hurts, but I know I deserve it. "Syd?"

"I got used to not wearing this for those two months. It feels a little foreign."

I nod and keep driving. I'm not going to force it out of her, but I learned in the DSR that people tend to be more apparent when they're tired. Their true colors shine through more readily.

The rest of the ride is plagued by an unnatural silence, so the stark contrast of a beaming Marshall greeting us when we walk into APO is a bit of a surprise. He hands me a cigar, then Sydney gets one, too, but she politely declines.

"What's the occasion? Is it the meeting today?"

"Not at all. I'm going to be a dad again."

I smile. "Congratulations, Marshall."

I glance over at Sydney. She smiles, but it's clearly just a smile of politeness. "Congratulations," she says, and then starts to walk away.

I follow her. "Syd, what's wrong?"

She shakes her head, and a tear starts rolling down her cheek. I brush it away with my hand, and then lift her face to mine. "What is it?"

"Carrie…" she starts, and then begins crying again.

"What is it?"

"Carrie's not the only one…"

"She's not the only one that's pregnant? Is that what you're trying to say?"

Sydney nods, clearly plagued by something she's not telling me.

"What aren't you telling me."

"I feel so guilty."

"What did you do?"

"When I found out..."

"What?"

"I considered...ending..."

I realize what she's saying. "Did you do it?"

Sydney looks at me apologetically. "I was at the clinic, but I couldn't go through with it."

...TBC...